At a Moment like This
by NaomiMiller
Summary: A collection of more somber moments from the Green Rider series.
1. Abilities Revealed

**A/N: DISLCAIMER: Any thing, one, or place you may recognize belongs solely to Kristen Britain. Enjoy**!

Prompt: Ty's Thoughts when a Rider is revealed to have Ereal's ability

Ty was grooming Crane in the stables when he heard the bell announcing an incoming Rider start ringing in the yard. He and Crane shared a look before he set the brush aside and let himself out of the stall. He was the only one in the area so he went out to greet the incoming Rider. Ty met Hep at the entrance to the stables and nodded to the stable master. A few minutes later a horse and Rider came trotting up into the yard. Ty recognized the rider as Ariella, a new Rider from L'Petrie province. Her red hair almost rivaled that of the Captain's. She had a bit more of an even keel than the Captain though. Of course, he would have recognized her even without the hair as she rode Yates's willowy, bay mare Phoebe. Ariella had arrived shortly before news of the Blackveil mission had reached them. When Phoebe was returned back to the castle, along with Condor, the two had formed an almost instant connection. It was still painful to see someone besides Yates on her back.

Ariella reined Phoebe up in front of them. Hep grabbed hold of the mare's bridle as Ariella swung down from the saddle. She was returning from a message run to a minor lord who lived in Adolind Province.

"Hey Ty," she greeted him, stretching her neck to work the kinks out. He noticed recent bruise on her collarbone that disappeared underneath the collar of her shirt and there was a newly healed cut that curved under her ear and disappeared into her hairline. He put a hand on her shoulder to stop her from going by him. She visibly flinched at the contact.

"Are you all right?" he asked her. Seeing her hesitate he added, "Don't lie to me. From the pace you came in, I know the message can wait."

Ariella sighed. She motioned for them to move inside the stables as Hep led Phoebe away. Ty followed her inside, leaning up against the wall while Ariella paced in the aisle way.

"I'm fine now, thanks to some unexpected events and a kind family who took me in for a night. I was just outside of Cira, a village about twenty miles south of Corsa. It was probably about an hour before sundown," she said in what the Captain called a "Messenger" voice. "Phoebe and I were riding along at a pretty good pace when these four guys came out of nowhere. They blocked the road and pulled me from the saddle before I even knew what was happening. They were so fast. Even Phoebe couldn't get free of them. One of them grabbed hold of her bridle while the other three pulled me out of the saddle before I could get to any of my weapons." Here Ariella paused as she took a deep breath and closed her eyes.

Ty was watching her with a sick feeling. He could see where this conversation was going. He picked up the message satchel from where she had dropped it on the floor and turned it over in his hands as he waited for her to continue. He knew this was one of those kinds of things that you didn't push. It had gotten so quiet while he waited, that he nearly jumped out of his skin when started speaking again.

"Once they pulled me from the saddle, I fought them as best I could with it being three against one, but they were quite a bit stronger and dragged me into the woods. I did find out what my ability was though," she said with a rueful smile. Ty nodded in understanding. Riders never discovered their abilities under happy circumstances, usually when their lives were in immediate danger.

"I was lying there on the ground, trying to get away. I was looking for something to defend myself with when I saw a pretty sturdy limb lying about a foot from my hand. I was trying to reach for it, wishing it was closer when it suddenly moved into my hand. I took hold of it and clubbed two of the guys with it. They let me go and that was enough for me to get free and back to my feet. My other weapons were still with my saddle on Phoebe so I swung the limb with all my might at the third guy and hit him hard enough to knock him out. I ran for the road where Phoebe was trying to trample the other guy, but like I said, they were fast. I clobbered him with the limb then leapt into the saddle and rode like hell." She finished her tale then looked at Ty. Her brow knitted in concern, "Are _you_ okay?"

Ty was staring at her, his face pale as he felt all the blood drain out of it. He forced himself to nod mechanically.

"Yeah, yeah, sorry. I'm glad you're alright Ariella. Make sure you go by the Mending Wing to get looked at after you drop off your messages."

"I will," she said taking her message satchel back from him. "Are you sure you're all right?"

"Yeah, I'll be fine," he assured her. "Listen, if you need someone to talk to, you come and find m."

She nodded, "Thanks Ty."

He watched her go before walking back to Crane's stall in a daze. Crane nudged his rider's shoulder as he sank down onto a trunk that was sitting outside the stall. He had known there was a possibility of someone getting Ereal's brooch, especially with the influx of new Riders, but he still hadn't been prepared for it. Every day, when he saw Crane he still thought of her. It was impossible not to.

Every time he saw a new Rider get their brooch, he wondered what their ability would be. It had been nearly three and a half years since Ereal was killed, and now someone had finally chosen her brooch, or rather her brooch chose them. He leaned his head back against the wall behind him. He had not expected how hard this would hit him. It was like seeing a ghost.

Crane rested his muzzle on Ty's shoulder. He reached over and patted the gelding's nose. Ty still had dreams, nightmares really, of the night that had paired them together. While the two had formed a deep partnership, Ty would still never forget the sight of Crane guarding Ereal's body or the blood that stained his own normally immaculate uniform after having to euthanize his own beloved mare Flicker.

She had died while using her ability to save another Rider. Now her ability had resurfaced in another Rider, saving that Rider's life. It was strange to see another Rider with an ability that had belonged to one of your friends; a friend who had been dead for three years. Somehow, he thought Ereal would have approved of Ariella having her ability. She would have liked the young woman.

A shadow fell over him and Ty looked over to see Connly standing there.

"Hey Ty, Mapstone's looking for you," he said. "You okay?" Connly asked his friend when he took a second look at him.

"Ariella has Ereal's ability," Ty told him.

Connly went completely still, "Oh."

Ty passed a hand over his face and nodded, "Yeah."


	2. Storm

**A/N: Another Green Rider piece is up! For those of you waiting for Not Broken sorry this isn't what you were looking for. This came to me after seeing and hearing all the news coverage over the Oklahoma tornadoes a few months back. I just could not even begin to imagine what that would be like, losing so much in the blink of an eye. DISCLAIMER: As always, I own nothing you may recognize, it all belongs to Kristen Britain. Enjoy!**

The Wanda Plains was not a place you wanted to live when one of the summer storms came up. It was certainly not a place you wanted to be caught out in the open without any shelter when one of those storms came up. Unfortunately, that's exactly where Rider Fergal Duff and Jericho Frost found themselves at present. They had ridden out to inspect the herds bound for Sacor City that spring.

Fergal watched the growing band of storm clouds with a deep-seated feeling of unease. "Where'd you say the nearest shelter was again?"

"We're still at least another two miles out," Jericho told him. Fergal could feel Sunny growing more nervous with every passing moment as the blue-black clouds continued to gather in the sky. Fergal felt like the very air itself was charged with some kind of strange, live energy. The herd of horses fanning out on the plains below them was growing restless as well. The mares all kept a wary ear flicked towards the sky while the stallion paced back and forth as if he was challenging the gods in the sky above to try and harm his harem. Fergal could easily pick out the golden coat of the palomino colt he had met on his first trip here with Karigan some months ago. The colt had grown three times the size he had been then, but he was still all legs and awkward angles. Fergal turned his attention back to the sky.

"I don't think we'll make it to that shelter before this storm gets here," Fergal said. At that moment a clap of thunder rolled across the plains, startling some of the horses down below. They went prancing and snorting through the tall, silver-tipped grass.

Jericho shrugged, "We can still try for it. I don't know about you, but I don't fancy being caught out in the open when that storm gets here." While they had been talking the clouds had doubled in size and were fast approaching them.

"I don't either," Fergal agreed. The two young men wheeled their horses around and spurred them into a gallop. Fergal heard the sounds of hundreds of hooves pounding the earth and turned in his saddle to see the herd racing after them, the storm on their heels. Lightning flickered in the sky as another clap of thunder shook the sky. Fergal flattened himself on Sunny's back, leaning low over the mare's neck with her mane whipping his face as they raced after Jericho and Jack.

The first curtain of rain hit them a few moments after they had begun their breakneck dash for safety. Between the rain and the sudden gloom cast by the storm clouds, the riders could barely see past their horses' ears. Lightning slashed through the gloom, a white-hot bolt light arcing from ground to sky. It was a little too close for Fergal's liking, making the hair on the back of his neck stand on end. Fergal had seen storms like this a few times before, and none of them had ended well. He and his family and some of their neighbors would all hole up in the cellar of his father's butcher shop to wait out the storm. They would sit there in the dark and silence with the creaking carcasses and listen to the storm rage over their heads and hope that they would still have a home to go to when it was all done.

Fergal and Jericho plunged through the rain and hail that was now falling from the bruised and swollen clouds overhead. Fergal honestly had no idea how far they'd gone or even if they were headed in the right direction. In this weather time and direction had no meaning. Rain water ran down his face and into his eyes, obscuring his vision even more. He let Sunny have her head. Horse's always seemed to know the way home even if their riders were hopelessly lost.

He squinted through the gloom in front of them looking for a sign of any kind of shelter. He could make out some kind of structure off to their right. With a surge of hope he realized that it was an old stone watch tower that must have been built by the people who had inhabited the plains centuries ago.

"Jericho! Over there!" he shouted just as the winds dropped off and everything went deathly silent. Fergal felt his heart drop through his feet. He didn't have to look at the sky to know what that meant. Apparently Jericho knew as well since he didn't even look to where Fergal was pointing before swerving Jack in that direction. Any kind of shelter was needed right now.

It was a fairly large tower with a tall, wide door, which was good seeing as how both riders galloped through it, pulling their horses up to a screeching halt to avoid crashing into the opposite wall.

Fergal was grateful that this tower still had its roof meaning that they no longer had a constant barrage of water and ice pellets falling on their heads. They both dismounted as another clap of thunder shook the tower around them. He crossed to one of the arrow slits in the side of the tower and looked out. The sky was a sickly, brackish green color. Fergal was certain his face was probably the same color. A large funnel was starting to descend from the cloud. Being from the plains of western Sacoridia Fergal had seen a few tornadoes in his time and they never ceased to both fascinate and terrify him all at the same time. He couldn't see any of the bands of wild horses anywhere. He hoped they were holed up somewhere safe where they were out of harm's way. Although, this was one of the biggest tornadoes he had ever seen.

Fergal turned from the window and hunkered down against the wall next to Jericho who was almost completely white underneath the broad-brimmed straw hat he was wearing. Sunny and Jack pawed the ground and tossed their heads. The whites of their eyes seemed to glowing in the dim light.

The ground shook as the tornado touched the ground. The wind was howling around their shelter in a nerve-fraying wail that made Fergal want to scream and clap his hands over his ears. His heart was racing as the rumblings grew louder, heralding the approach of the destructive funnel. Fergal could hear trees snapping like twigs outside. They were coated with a fine layer of mortar dust and small pebbles when a large item-Fergal assumed it was a tree-clipped the outside walls. Jack reared and neighed shrilly in fright. Sunny stood completely still, her whole body quivering in terror. Fergal screwed his eyes shut and tucked his head between his knees, praying to any god that would listen to spare them from the weather's wrath.

It seemed to work as moments later everything grew still and quiet again. Only this time it was a more peaceful kind of stillness. Fergal felt like his whole body was vibrating with so much adrenaline and naked terror still running through his system. His ears were ringing in the sudden quiet and he wondered briefly if this is what it's like for people who can't hear. Carefully, Fergal and Jericho both inched up the wall to look out the window. The tornado was gone, leaving a path of broken trees and churned up earth beneath the dark gray sky overhead. Curtains of rain were still coming down, turning everything into a blurry scene of watery colors. As they watched the rain began to slack off. Fergal and Jericho looked at each other in question. Should they go? With a silent agreement they decided that they should continue on.

They led their horses back out of the tower. Fergal wondered what had happened to the herds on the plains and his mind wandered back to the gangly, palomino colt. He hoped nothing had happened to him. The thought struck of chord of fear through him.

As they prepared to mount back up and head back to the Frost family homestead, Jericho tapped him on the shoulder. Fergal turned to the youngest Frost boy. Jericho pointed off to the left as the sun broke through the clouds, illuminating the golden, palomino colt trotting towards them, the rest of the herd milling around behind him. Fergal could feel himself beaming as he reached out to touch the velvety muzzle of the curious colt. He knew everything would be okay.

**A/N: As always I would love to know what you think. Leave me a message after this note~Naomi**


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